Amid tight security and a heavy police presence, the Christian Dior autumn/winter 2011 collection was shown in Paris this afternoon, in the absence of the man who had conceived it; the disgraced British designer, John Galliano, dismissed and facing trial in France in the wake of an anti-Semitic scandal.

The rue de Varenne on the Left Bank was closed-off and steel barriers were erected to control crowds. The 1,200 guests fought their way through hundreds of onlookers to the entrance of the heavily-guarded Musée Rodin, where the show was staged in a white tent.

The editor-in-chief of American Vogue, Anna Wintour, and her daughter Bee, together with numerous high-profile attendees, including the Russian supermodel, Natalia Vodianova, came in through a back entrance to avoid the mêlée.

He moved even further to distance the illustrious name of the House of Christian Dior from the repugnant events which have led Galliano to stand trial over a drunken anti-Semitic rant in a Paris bar.

"What has happened over the last week has been a terrible and wrenching ordeal for us all," he said.

"It has been deeply painful to see the Dior name associated with the disgraceful statements attributed to its designer. However brilliant he may be."

"Such statements are intolerable because of our collective duty to never forget the Holocaust and its victims, and because of the respect for human dignity that is owed to each person (sic) and to all its peoples."

Toledano underlined how deeply-felt had been the horrific nature of the Galliano scandal by revealing that the sister of the founder of the house, Mr Christian Dior, had been sent to Buchenwald, one of the Nazi concentration camps.

He said the values laid down by Mr Dior, since he opened his 'maison' in 1947, continued to be carried on by the wonderful and diverse group of people in the Dior ateliers and studios who dedicated all their time and energy to achieving the ultimate in artisanship and femininity.

The mood at the show was sombre and muted, with more than one guest suggesting the atmosphere was "funereal", something heightened by the black ribbons which tied the name tags to each attendees' black chair; the black carpet; and the plaintive strains of Chopin and Debussy which echoed through the tent, pre-show.

Bernard Arnault, the chairman and chief executive of the luxury supergroup, LVMH, and of Christian Dior, was not present. His wife, Hélène Mercier, a concert pianist, was giving a recital in Canada, a PR executive explained, "and this was all planned before anything happened."

Arnault's daughter, Delphine, who works for LVMH, and his son, Antoine, who is head of communications for the conglomerate, were both in the front row, together with Peter Marino, the architect responsible for the design of the worldwide chain of stores for Dior, Louis Vuitton and Céline, among others. He was dressed, 'comme d'habitude', in a Harley Davidson black leather jacket and cap, and biker trousers.

"There is pathos here," he said, echoing the sense of tragedy which has accompanied John Galliano's downfall. "It feels weird, in fact I'm weirded out."

Other celebrities, clad head-to-toe in Dior, included Anouchka Delon, the daughter of the French film actor, Alain Delon; Alysson Paradis, sister of Vanessa Paradis, the long-term partner of Johnny Depp; the Chinese actress and pop-singer, Fan Bing Bing; and the celebrated fashion photographer, Patrick Demarchelier.

Demarchelier, who has photographed both Galliano and Galliano for Dior creations for the last two decades said: "He is a gorgeous designer. To finish like this? Phew! "

One of many Dior clients, Natalie Berdugo, who arrived in a Dior red fox jacket and chiffon dress, said: "I am wearing Dior and I'm Jewish."

Another client, the wealthy Italian socialite, Carla Maria Orsi Carbone, who was wearing a Dior floral chiffon dress from the current spring/summer collection, said: "It is so sad to me. I love him."

The show opened with an eerie replay of John Galliano's own catwalk appearances, as the teenage American supermodel, Karlie Kloss - only a toddler when the ex-designer joined Dior in late 1996 - struck a flamboyant "Three Musketeers" pose in a black floor-length-cloak, black hat, boots, and velvet knickerbockers.

The collection ended with a parade of barely-there, lingerie-look peignoir-dresses and evening-gowns in ruffled and pleated see-through chiffon, with the models perched on skyscraper-heeled shoes, furnished with ribbons and bows.

As the "theatre" dimmed, and an expectant audience wondered what would happen next, the lights suddenly swelled to reveal the entire, 30-strong members of the Dior studios and ateliers, all dressed in white coats.